Pink
by thisthatorme
Summary: A series of Sakura-centric one shots with all of our favorite shinobi.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note:

So, I have no business to be doing another story. Two more, actually.. But what can I say.. The muse strikes!

Disclaimer – I don't own anything or anyone from Naruto.

These series of one shots will all be Sakura-centric. So... Yay!

Let me know if there's any specific couples you'd like to see!

*.*.*.*.*

Everything hurt.  
His mind, body..  
His soul.

The darkness swallowed him whole and he was ...

Down into the depths, his heart crawled with hate... and sadness, regret wouldn't cover the feeling.

"Obito.. I guess it was a matter of time.. " The words echoed, somewhere amongst the darkness..

Maybe it was his time. A hole to the chest would surely mean death. Maybe then he could see them again.

"No!" The word cried into the abyss.

 _No?_

 _No?_

He was not allowed into the realm of relief.. instead..

"I will not lose you, Kakashi!" The voice screamed - light ripping into the darkness.

He knew that voice.  
That voice sent chills through his body and in the wake of the pain came warmth and comfort - it felt like..

"Dammit, Kakashi!"

And the light exploded and he was soaring through time and space.. crashing..

Crashing..

A gasp filled his body - his lungs filling with air, greedy with need.

The warmth continued and the voice vexed him from the world of darkness..

The light was too much, his eyes hurt from the intrusion.

"Welcome back.." the voice was tired. "Take it easy.." It whispered.

Slowly, gray and red eyes opened, and there - surrounded by smoke and chaos - stood the angel that saved him. Pink hair and tired, emerald green eyes.

"You shouldn't have.." his throat was sore and hoarse. It hurt to breathe even.

"Don't you dare say that." She warned, her voice stern as she offered him water from her canteen. "I refuse to let one of my precious people die." She murmured. A tear escaped those emerald eyes, "I refuse to let you go.." she whispered.

He didn't know if he ultimately had a choice.. but his strength came back and when he had enough of it, he pulled himself to her and crashed his lips to hers.

She stilled above him for a moment before she kissed him back deeply.

There, amongst the chaos of war and the suffocating thickness of blood and death, Kakashi found a reason to keep fighting.


	2. Chapter 2 - Love in Death

Even now, with his hand through her chest, she smiled that angelic smile.

Her emerald eyes watched as his widened – he didn't think she would actually allow him to catch her. Blood began to seep from her lips, blood pooling from where his hand had entered her through.

"Why... Why didn't you dodge..." For the first time in his life, Uchiha Sasuke knew the meaning of fear.

What had he done?

What had he done!?

Sasuke stared at the pinkett who just smiled softly at him. "I love you so much... I refuse for you to be a monster..." She whispered..

Before he could even question what she had meant, the female before him disappeared in a 'poof' of smoke and he soon found that underestimating his ex-teammate was an idiotic idea. "I love you enough.. to save you from yourself.." She whispered into his ear as her blade drew further through his chest.

"Sakura-chan!" Cried Naruto as he watched the pinkett end their _friend's_ life, "What... What did you do!?" He cried once more, falling to his knees – a shocked looking Kakashi standing not too far behind him.

Sakura pulled out her blade and stood facing the two men, "I loved him enough to stop the madness. He wasn't going to come back, Naruto. The Sasuke we knew was dead way before I came onto this ground." Her voice was void of emotion and she didn't bother to continue. Glancing down at the body of her once teammate, she spoke softly, "I don't know if Shishou will give him an honored burial... but you can bring his body and see." She shrugged and left the field.

It flashed across both of their minds – was it only Sasuke that died today?


	3. Chapter 3 - Smitten

"What's on your mind?" His voice was heavy with sleep. She smiled softly, her eyes flickering over to his form.

"Nothing.." She was tired, but her body was restless.

"Doesn't seem like 'nothing'." He mused softly, nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck. He enjoyed her scent greatly – how she always smelled sweet and sultry. Her pink hair tickled his face a little and she could feel him smile against her neck.

"I should get going before people start waking up." She finally said, his posture stiffening for a moment.

"No.." He murmured.

Sakura pulled away and cocked an eyebrow, "No? What do you mean 'no'?" Her voice held a hint of amusement.

"Stay. I don't care if they see you. If they know.."

"Hyuuga..." Her voice held a warning.

"I don't care, Haruno.. What does it matter?.. It doesn't anymore. My clan owes you more than you know. After what you did for Hinata. After what you did for me..."

The hours of her slaving over the two cousins trying to keep them from death as they appeared on her table, knocking on death's door. They had been on a recon mission that was a trap and the two Hyuuga were the only part of the four man team to make it back, albeit barely.

It took several hours to get them stabilized and about a few days of constant monitoring, and then a few months of rehabilitation – Sakura had the cousins as good as new...

And that was how she found herself as she was, laying with a smitten Hyuuga Neji who was no longer afraid to admit he had fallen for the pink haired medic.

"I don't know what we are.. but I want to figure it out.. And I don't want to hide it.." Neji stared Sakura in the eyes – light lavender clashing with emerald.

Finally, with a small smile, Sakura nodded, "Fine... but I'm taking a shower and getting dressed.. Rather not have the whole clan see me in a more inappropriate way than they probably already will." She mused, kissing him softly before heading into the bathroom..

Looking after her, Neji smiled.

He was definitely in love.


	4. Chapter 4 - Hospital visit

He watched her as her heart broke.

He watched as she tried to piece herself together.

He watched as she was still his friend, giving all three men on her team the love she barely had left.

His heart was on fire for her. .

Filled with anger and the feeling of betrayal; how did she forgive so easily?

He was unsure.

His little cousin did not deserve that sort of love, kindness, loyalty, nor compassion.

He was blind and ignorant to how cold the world really was.

"Oh, hi Shisui-kun!" The pink haired medic chirped, her emerald eyes watching him intently. A smile graced his lips and he couldn't remember what exactly he was there for. "Not to alarm you, Shisui, but you're bleeding..." She murmured, amusement in her voice.

Shisui scratched the back of his neck, "Ah, yeah.." _That's what I came here for._

"Come on, I'll patch you up." Sakura smiled, tugging his hand as she half-dragged him to her office. Shutting the door behind her, she instructed Shisui to remove his shirt.

"You've a deep gash on your side and a few badly bruised ribs." She stated, maybe more to herself than him.

He enjoyed the feeling of her hands on him, of the warmth that came from her chakra and the look on her face as she concentrated on heeling him.

"Thank you." He said softly as she pulled away, only for him to grab her hand before she could fully remove herself, "Come to dinner with me." _Smooth._

"Uh…." Sakura looked at Shisui for a long moment. He was very handsome, as all Uchiha seemed to be. He was always kind to her, making her laugh when the men of her team were doom and gloom or just on her nerves. He seemed to have a sixth sense for when she was having a crappy day because he always seemed to appear out of nowhere and brighten it all up.

After a few moments of deliberation, Sakura gave a bright smile, "Lucky for you, I'm pretty hungry and I actually end my shift in a few minutes." Shisui smiled back, his heart skipping a beat at the glow that came from her. As Shisui busied himself with redressing and Sakura began taking off her white coat, she smirked, "Maybe you should go shower and change – I'll do the same. I don't want our first date to be remembered with bloodstain and me reeking of profession."

There was a pink tint on Shisui's cheeks at this, what the hell just happened? He had a date with his long time crush?

The medic never stopped amazing him.

"How did you know?" Shisui asked as they headed out of her office.

"Because I've finally allowed myself to take notice of when someone gave to me what I always give to others. See you in a little bit, Shisui. My house, hour and a half." She smiled, giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

In a flurry of blossoms, Shisui watched as she disappeared.

Maybe he should come to the hospital more often.

*.*.*.*

 **Author's note:**

 **Sorry this one wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. I shall try again. Maybe Shisui will get another installment. Who knows.**

 **Much love.**


	5. Chapter 5 - Aggression

He was an aggressive lover, not that Sakura had any issues with that. In the field he was a cold and calculating assassin, not afraid spilling blood or killing. In the home he was docile - he was kind spirited and peaceful. He was a pacifist by nature and loved those around him greatly..

But in the bed, he was carnal - nothing but primal instincts driving him forward as he picked her up and pinned her against the wall, his mouth taking hers and his hands searing her skin with their warmth.

She had loved him for a long time now. They'd been put on the same team more than enough times to know each other's in and outs - she was his team medic and had see them all through the good, bad, and ugly.

And he, as her captain, had seen her in disarray and in days like today. Today had been Naruto's wedding to the Hyuuga princess, and Sakura had agreed to be a bridesmaid. She looked so beautiful and radiant in that petal soft dress with her hair pinned up and soft eyes watching the loving couple.

He had never told her explicitly how he felt. They had shared a bed a few times already, in the sexual sense it was only two or three times whereas for survival means it was countless.

The first time was when they had gotten back and she found out her mother was dying. He found her on the training fields letting out emotion he had never seen. He wanted to communicate with her.. but it ended up with them tearing each other's clothing off.

The second time was when they'd had a rather nasty argument, she had disobeyed his orders and almost jeopardized a mission for a civilian who was pregnant. They argued amongst themselves when they got back argued. One thing led to another and as argued and as a show of dominance, Itachi had pressed her against a tree..Sakura was not one to be manhandled and showed him exactly what she felt..

This time, however, was different. They were in her home and he had finally told her he loved her. Sakura hadn't responded because she didn't know how. So one kiss turned into several and next thing she knows she plastered against a wall with Itachi attacking her neck with his wet, hot mouth.

A knock at the door annoyed both of them as they stared holes into it.

"Guys, can whatever you're doing wait? Yamato and Kakashi are about to crash and I'm not bringing them to the compound." Called an irritated Sasuke.

Both Itachi and Sakura traded glances. They hadn't exactly been secretive about things but they were glad Sasuke wasn't making it weird.

Itachi looked at Sakura, his eyes taking her in as they swirled red.

"I love you too.." She finally said, her emerald eyes bright like the jewels they were.


	6. Chapter 6 - Circumstances

She stood there – kunai in hand, emerald eyes fierce.

She was so weak and easy to destroy – a blossom ready to be crushed by the monster that stood before her.

Red hair fell into jade eyes as jade and emerald clashes.

He had to admit, some part of him was interested that such a delicate thing would raise its hackles to attempt to defend what it felt dear to it.

She was either really brave, or really stupid to become between a monster like him.

"I won't let you hurt one of my precious people!" She cried.

A smirk came unto his lips as he lashed out and pinned her to a tree, "Very well, what will they do for you?" Came a deep voice.

There wasn't fear or anger in those emerald eyes as he held her there, just sadness and sympathy. "What... what happened to you? Who made you this way?" Her words were squeezed from her as if it were air from her lungs.

He narrowed his eyes at her, why did she ask that? Why did she care? Why wasn't she screaming for help, for him to spare her life? Why wasn't she crying in fear?

Jade eyes watched the pink haired female who watched him.

It hurt to look into those eyes. The ones that were a window to her soul.

Somewhere, he saw a flash of something he had not seen since his mother..

Love, compassion, understanding and forgiveness.

As he squeezed the life from her, she gave him nothing but love.

He was a monster tainting such a pure soul.

Letting her go, the redhead started to retreat.

"What is your name?" She called, stopping him.

"Gaara.." He answered, not sure why he did.

"Sakura.. I hope to meet you under better circumstances next time.." she whispered as she collapsed..

Confusion painted his face for a moment before he disappeared..

A cherry blossom had just seen past the monster the world ran from..

He never thought he'd see the day.

Maybe some day he would seek her out…

Under better circumstances.


	7. Chapter 7 - Come to Me

She wouldn't tell him.

No.

Not today.

Not ever.

He was older than her.

And her a teacher!

Not her teacher, but a teacher!

What the hell had Ino been thinking?

" _You make it way too obvious, forehead!" Ino cackled as she watched the pinket check out the older Uchiha as if no one would take notice. "You should tell him…" Ino mused innocently, "You'll never know. You're almost of age…"_

Sakura sighed deeply as she made her way into class, her head clouded with a vortex of fantasies and irrational thoughts.

Of course, as cliché as it was, she would bump right into someone for not paying attention. "Gomen." She stated quickly, as she almost fell, only to have a strong hand shoot out and grasp her arm to keep her leveled. "Ah.. thank you!" She squeaked.

"Just.. be careful.. _Sak-u-ra_.." murmured a deep voice. Looking up, Sakura's whole face turned to the color of her very pink hair.

"My apologies, Madara-san!" She squeaked again out of embarrassment.

This caused the older Uchiha to smile, "If you wanted to touch me.. that's all you had to say.." He whispered into her ear as he passed by.

Of course, it was hard not to notice a pair of green eyes follow his every move whenever they were in your immediate proximity. To say the girl wasn't enchanting would be the biggest lie he could tell. Pink hair and green eyes, that would catch anyone's attention, but the fact that she was top of her class in every class she had (even those in which his bratty little nephew were in) was just so much more appealing. The fact that she was soon to be 18 didn't hurt at all, either.

A feral grin spread on his lips, "Come to me in two months.. and I'll take you under my wing.." he called over his shoulder, a smirk on his lips and his eyes flashing red for a moment.

...


	8. Chapter 8 - Lie to Me

A sad smile came unto his lips. "I hate when people lie to me... I would have thought you'd be the last person on earth to lie to me, Sakura-chan." His words were swallowed by the howling winds and desperate snow.

This wasn't how she meant to tell him and she could easily see how he thought it a lie.

"I'm not.." she murmured, tears spilling from her emerald eyes. "I'm not lying.."

Naruto turned to the Pinkett, he wasn't sure still.. this didn't add up. She spent her whole life chasing after the last Uchiha and didn't notice him once...

How, all of a sudden, did she just blurt out her love for him.

"I was blind..." The words were being gobbled down by the winter's rush, "I was blind but.. I see it now. I would never mean anything to him.. I thought I knew what love was. I thought it was everything I could give to him. But I was wrong.. it's everything you give to me.. have always given to me. I don't deserve any single part of it all.. but you give and give.. and here I stood, hurting you even as you gave me all you had. To the point where you swore you'd bring back the man that continuously hurts us both." Sakura finally turned to him, "I love you. I know it is true now. At first I was so lost in searching for him that I didn't think. I didn't see.. but now I do. I love you, Naruto.." The words were warm and soft - filled with something he had never heard from Sakura before..

Or anyone..

It was love.

Naruto wasn't sure what he was doing but all of a sudden, his body moved to hers. His arms around her waist as he kissed her deeply, greedily taking her lips with his. He had to know. He had to feel it for himself. At first she was still beneath him, but then came her response. The heat and passion that he never thought was possible. The kiss that made him see stars and colors he'd never knew existed.

Even Kurama was stunned.

When they pulled apart, he knew.

He knew she hadn't lied and it hurt even more..

"What about Sasuke?"

"I do love him... but I'm not in love with him. He's hurt us too much, we can't keep trying to help someone that doesn't want to be helped. He needs to find his way, we can't force it.. not anymore. I'm tired and I refuse to see the man I love hurt any longer.." her words were filled with such... passion and he knew..

He knew his love was returned.

"Sakura.. we have to find him.. he's our teammate.. someone needs to believe in him.." Naruto finally whispered as he leaned his forehead against hers.

"Okay.. okay.." she smiled softly, "together though.. by each other sides.. no more watching your backs.."

"Never again." He agreed.


	9. Chapter 9 - The Game

She knew she should be running and he knew he should be chasing her. Neither of them could force themselves to move. It was a sudden push of his body against hers, pinning her to a tree, those green orbs smoldering and he lost control. Rows of sharp teeth glistened in the darkness of night as he bent down and kissed her deeply.

When had this game begun?

When had she begun to betray her village?

When had he allowed her to become something more than just a good time? When had she become something so much sweeter?

It had begun months ago, the medic had a solo mission. They'd met while she was on her way towards her destination. "Oh, uh.. well I'm on my way for a mission, and none of the details of said mission is to get into battle with either of you, so I rather just be on my way.." she shrugged when Kisame acknowledged the girl and asked what she was doing. Itachi stood to his side, silently amused by the medic's answer.

"What fun would it be if we just let you go?"

Sakura looked thoughtful, "Because I know at least 4 ways to kill you without touching you... all without a blood limit." Her eyes darted towards the Uchiha before returning to the big blue skinned man beside him. Kisame let out a rather amused laugh while Itachi narrowed his eyes.

"Telling us such a thing does not give us much confidence that we should not kill you."

"Mhm. I guess not. Well, I mean, what do you get from it anyway?" She asked, her emerald eyes flashing like gems beneath the moonlight, her hair like liquid moon around her shoulders, some tucked beneath her mask. Both men may have been S classed shinobi, but even they could see when something is truly beautiful.

The two men traded a look, "We could keep you as bait for the Kyuubi friend of yours. Or maybe just keep you as a pet." Kisame mused.

"Well, I would be too annoying for you to keep me as a pet. If you mean to warm your bed, you may be many things, but I do not think rapists are one of them. That would be Hidan." Itachi and Kisame both raised an eyebrow at this. They weren't sure if they should take it as a compliment or be offended. "We kill and fight and steal. You think rape is beneath us?" Itachi asked dangerously.

There was a look in her eyes at the question that made them both pause, "I would hope so." She said softly before disappearing in a flurry of leaves. Both men were too confused and lost in thought to go after her.

The second time he had met her, she was sitting in a tree not too far from the Konoha border. She wore black shorts and a red tank top, her feet bare and her hair pulled into a messy bun on her head. She looked relaxed as she lie on the tree's limb. "If you're going to stare, at least bring food with you." She yawned as she stretched, and had he not caught himself, he would have smiled at this. It was bad enough he was staring at the girl as her arms raised above her head and stretched, her shirt hiking up over her stomach and showing gracious amounts of ivory skin.

"Well, I could always eat you." Kisame shot back, only for him to realize how that sounded.

"I mean, I wouldn't be too upset." She laughed lightly as she slowly stood on the limb.

"You act rather recklessly for a medic and shinobi. You're quite a bit away from home and you hardly look ready for battle." He chided.

Sakura shrugged, "People underestimate me all the time, works to my advantage." She answered simply, taking out two bars and handing one to him. Kisame stared at the bar in her hand for a long moment, "I could _kill_ you. I _should_ kill you. You should kill _me_. Someone should be dying right now, why are you offering me _food_?" He asked, truly stumped at the moment.

"Well you haven't killed me and I don't really feel in the mood to fight right now, so why not just have some food and enjoy the nice weather?" She answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

She looked at him.

Really looked at him and he knew she didn't see him as a monster, he knew she really saw him, past his name and what he looked like - she _saw_ him.

And he saw her.

The first time they kissed, it has been several months of this game. Meeting during missions, pretending to fight only to get alone for at least a minute or two. Her solo missions became more frequent and they met each other more often. Itachi figured it out and while he would have liked the Pinkett for himself, he figured his friend (or closest thing to a friend he had since Shisui) deserved to have happiness as well, whatever that may mean in the world.

The first time they kissed, they were both soaked to the bone from the down pour, they'd been in the hotel and didn't even know it until they saw each other scouting. Itachi didn't need to be asked as he figured the two would eventually end up needing time alone, so he left for a while.

They tumbled through the door of her room and he kissed her right against the wall. They kissed so deeply and her body was flush against his. In the back of both of their minds, they knew this was wrong. They knew at some point they would have no choice but to be enemies again. To actually fight each other.

But right now, while they still had time, they didn't give a shit. Her body felt too good to him and his mouth was too warm to give up right now. Sakura moaned as Kisame bucked his hips to meet hers.

The kiss ended all to suddenly when Itachi burst through the room, "Konoha nin are here." He said suddenly, not bothered at all at his partners disposition.

Sakura and Kisame looked at Itachi before each other, sharing one last kiss before letting go.

It had been months before they eventually saw each other again. Rather, he and Itachi waltzed right into her home. It'd been a long day at the hospital and her body was hurting, her feet and legs felt dead, her chakra was at bare minimal and she had a headache that could kill a horse. Unlocking her door and slipping off her sandals, she walked right past the two men in her kitchen and went right into her shower.

The two traded looks and Kisame acted fast when he heard a thump in the bathtub. Walking into the bathroom, Sakura was lying unconsciously in the tub, the shower curtain pooling around her. Sighing deeply, Kisame pulled her from the bathtub and to her room. Itachi turned off the water and put back the curtain.

Kisame dried off the medic and put her into a pair of clean sleep clothing and sat beside her on the bed. He watched her sleep and something in his heart fluttered. "You shouldn't be here.." her voice came at some point, both men were in the room watching over her. "I don't want you guys to.." she whispered as she moved a bit, "Have to fight for nothing.." Itachi raised an eyebrow, why did she care about their well being? He wondered if this is why Kisame was so attached to the woman, she saw them as people instead of... monsters.

Kisame waved off her concern and brought her body to his. "It'll be fine."

"I'm so tired.." she murmured.

"Then get some sleep." Kisame shrugged.

Shaking her head lightly, "No. I mean I'm tired. Of this _place_. Of here. I'm locked in a hospital for months on end. I do everything for everyone else and at the end of the day.. no one is here to fish me out of the bathtub.." her eyes were glassed over from unshed tears. "I love my people. I love my village.. but I can't do this anymore. I'm just so fucking tired."

Before Kisame could say a word, Itachi prompted, "What would you do then?"

Her head shot up and the two stared at each other, "You plan on having Sasuke kill you." The shock that rippled over his face was amusing, "I'm not an idiot. I've seen a lot of scrolls and I know a lot of secrets. You want him to be the one to cleanse you of your sins. I hope you know what you're doing.." she gave him a soft smile, "I'm going to have him do the same for me."

Everyone remained silent and still. "You want him to _kill_ you?!" Kisame hissed.

"No, you dolt." She shook her head, "I may be a little weaker than my teammates, but I'm smarter and have a few abilities of my own. I just need him to think he killed me."

"You want to be free without being a missing nin." Itachi murmured. Sakura nodded.

"What if you regret it. Once you leave there is no coming back, Haruno." Kisame said pointedly. Sakura nodded with a sad smile, "Shishou is leaving soon anyway, she'll be passing things to Kakashi and him to Naruto. She never wanted to be the Hokage to begin with." She shrugged, "My teammates have barely seen me in the last 4 years, haven't really heard a peep out of any of them so, I mean.. would it really matter? I have a lot of acquaintances, but only one friend... and she's already married and expecting. I'm just... here.." Sakura looked away, it was the most tired either of them had ever seen her.

"And where would you go? We can't exactly just live a normal life. If you're expecting us to have some fairytale ending or something like that, it isn't going to happen." His words cut her and she removed herself from the bed. "I'm not _expecting_ you to take away my problems. I'm not _expecting_ you to sweep me off my feet. I'm not _expecting_ anything! I certainly didn't _expect_ to fucking fall in _love_ with you!" She hissed, both men staring at her.

"I'm not an idiot. I know there is no coming back. I know there is no "normal" life to lead after this. But I am still going and if you don't want to join, then that's your choice, I'm used to being alone anyway!" Tears were spilling now, her voice was angry but so sad too. This was the most emotion either of the men had ever seen from her, which was ironic because Itachi had only ever heard how annoying she was as a fan girl when she was younger.

"So you're not doing this for me?"

"No, I'm doing this for _me_.. it'll just be a perk if I get you too." Sakura said seriously, her eyes soft when watching the man with blue skin.

Itachi didn't need to be told to leave, so he exited the room and left them alone.

Kisame didn't pull the punches this time. This time, when he kissed her, they saw stars and white lights dancing behind their eyes. They made love that made the chorus sing Hallelujah.

Months would pass when Itachi would die by the hands of his brother and the village of the Hidden leaves would learn their blossom had wilted in the same fashion.

Sasuke cried as his chidori went right through the medic's chest. He had been expecting her to side step it. He though she would do _something_. But she didn't. Her eyes watched him as they dimmed, "I forgive you." She whispered as blood spilled from her mouth. And like that, the light in her eyes flickered out as if someone had snuffed out her flame.

When the boy had left, Kisame knelt beside the girl and sighed, he knew what he had to do, he only had so much time to do it and the brat took up a good majority of it.

He would bring her back, just how she told him to.

*.*.*.*.

The morning was warm, sunlight filtering through the window and birds chirping somewhere not too far away. The shower turned off and the man with blue skin dried himself off. Clothing, a cup of coffee and the man was satisfied as he sat on the front steps of his small home. He breathed in deeply as a smile graced his lips, "Tag! You're it!" Cried a young voice, a high pitch laughter filling the air as a tiny body flung it's self onto him. "Hey now, where's your mother?" Kisame laughed loudly, "She's over there." The boy pointed. There stood a woman with deep red hair and blue eyes, he smiled warmly at her, then love filled his eyes at the sight of the woman she spoke with, the woman with pink curls and green eyes who was heavy with her own child.

"Think you're ready for that?" Sakura laughed as they sat down so Sakura could put her feet up.

"Don't think there's much choice at this point." He smirked.

"I suppose not." The two kissed.

They played the game and won, and what better prize could they have received?


	10. Chapter 10 - Thank you

"What did you think was going to happen?! You'd waltz right in here and get her hopes up? You get upset because someone else was kind enough to give her the father figure she needed? You think you could just impose yourself on the life I and my daughter have created for ourselves? To demand a person you don't even know to come with you on your bullshit journey that took you from us begin with. You have no right to have a say now." If looks could kill, Sasuke would be 20 feet under. "You leave me with a baby and go off for whatever fucking reason. I have been by your side." She paused for a moment then shook her head, "I was by your side when you left me on that bench. I was by your side when you betrayed us. I was by your side when you try to kill Naruto and I. I have been by your side for everything. And yet, where were you?!"

Sasuke cringed with each word she said, he knew it was the truth and he hated it. His knuckles were white from strain, but he knew she needed to say all this. He deserved it.

"Where were you when our daughter was screaming her head off when she got sick? Where were you when she started the academy? When she learned about her Sharingan and awakened it! Wanna know why it awakened?" She hissed, "Because she cried about you when she thought you hated her!" Tears were falling down her face, "She thinks you fucking hate her!" Rubbing at her eyes, she looked away, "It's my fault for following you so blindly and running after you into the darkness. I can't do this anymore. I am tired and I deserve happiness." Sakura removed herself from leaning over the kitchen island. "I love you. Have always loved you. But I can't do this anymore. You can't expect me to wait years upon years and hope that maybe you'll miss us to come home. I can't live like that and it's my fault for jumping into this without considering what you wanted. You wanted to repent for your sins, and I support that, but I also have a daughter to be a role model to, to take care of and needs stability."

Sakura sighed, "I deserve to know what love feels like."

Sasuke stood there with a tick in his jaw. He was grinding his teeth together because every word she spat at his was tired, angry, and filled with detain. Worst of all, they were true. Sasuke watched the woman he loved self implode. How she was crumbling right before him and all he could think was how many times had he made her go through that? How many times was he absent for it?

His heart was squeezing in his chest and he wanted nothing more to runaway. He wanted to repent for his sins, in the process creating his biggest sin of all, leaving behind his family. It was his running away that got them there.

"I can stay home." He offered, his voice low.

Sakura scoffed, "You will become miserable and then make everyone around you miserable, and take it out on us for making you feel suffocated. You would leave and probably never come back. Then I'd know my daughter would really not meet you."

The fact that she was so flippant in her thoughts, he knew she was also right about that. It was fucking annoying how she knew him better than he knew himself at times, and yet he doesn't even remember how she likes her tea, that she sings when she's happy and bakes when she's upset. That she was head of the hospital and was still a good mother. He didn't know a damned thing about the mother of his child and his wife. He had a family he let down.

"Is this what you really want?" He asked, he was surprised it didn't break.

"What I really want is irrelevant, obviously as it always has been."

Even after this whole conversation, he was still thrown off when she aimed her angry words at him.

Leaning down, with his hand, he took the pen and signed off on it. Standing up, his heart broke all over again. Sakura was crying so hard, she was shaking. Sakura bent down and signed her side and it dawned on him that if she really did want this, she would have signed when she got the papers. She was hoping he would give her a good reason not to go. With the final swoop of a pen, the paper was one step closer to being official.

Taking the paper in her hand, she turned away and walked towards the door leading out of the kitchen. "You can sleep on my bed. I'll sleep in Sarada's room." She murmured over her shoulder. As she was about to cross the threshold, she turned back to Sasuke and bit her lip before saying, "Thank you." And walked away.

His eyes were still wide. She had said to him that he had said to her when he disbanded. Sasuke crumbled down in a chair. His heart and chest hurt so fucking much. For the first time in his life, he had no idea what to do. Before he got back, he had heard some rumors about the medic with pink hair - how she got so much attention but stayed humble and faithful for a guy that was never around to appreciate her.

They were right, he didn't show her that he appreciated her. He never even said it to her. He thought the good deeds he'd been doing would help him feel a little relief, but now he felt as though he'd never get repentance. How do you fix a broken home? A broken home you created.

*.*.*.*.*

The next day was a bit awkward, well for the two people who knew what happened. Breakfast was as normal, well for Sakura, Sarada, and Kakashi anyway. Sarada was waving wildly in excitement telling Sasuke about stories of her and his ex sensei. She would tell him about training and missions, and best of all, her bonding time with another man.

Sakura smiled affectionately towards the young woman and he sure as hell did not miss the eye contact Kakashi and Sakura traded, no matter how brief it was.

Anger swelled in his chest. How had he not put the pieces together earlier was beyond him. "Kakashi, let's spar after breakfast."

Kakashi looked at his ex student as he put his fork down. Sarada was smiling so brightly, Kakashi's mouth twitched to smile. Sakura had a frozen look on her face. She didn't know if it would be a good or a bad thing. Whichever she thought didn't matter because Kakashi agreed, giving his infamous crinkle eye smile.

Sakura had a bad feeling about this.

The two kunoichi were sitting on the sidelines as they watched the two men go at it. They were truly going at it. Sakura was sort of worried.

Kakashi knew everything Sasuke was feeling, what he wanted to say, what he wanted to do, but he honestly didn't give a flying fuck what Sasuke wanted or felt, he had twelve fucking years to right his wrongs, and yet it took Sakura leaving for him to realize what he was losing. Kakashi was reigning in his temper, he knew this was just so the Uchiha could let out his anger at the situation they were all in.

At the end, the two collapsed on the ground, throughly tired. "Take care of them. Of her." The Uchiha murmured, earning a nod from the silver haired Jounin, a smile on his face, "I will. Take care of Sarada and remember, even though she acts older, she is still just a child who misses her dad."

Sakura and Sarada checked the two men before bringing them home to clean up and rest.

"I'm here, okay my love. Just come back to me." Sarada smiled a watery smile as her mom slowly let go. "I will, okaa-san." She said softly, trying to keep her voice from breaking.

Kakashi dropped to his knees and brought the girl in for an embrace. The girl reciprocated the action and a few tears slipped down Sakura and Sarada's cheeks. Kakashi and Sasuke shook hands and Sasuke walked up to his soon to be ex-wife, "I'm not good with words." He murmured as he poked her forehead one last time. And she knew all the words he wanted to say. I do love you, and this breaks my heart. I should done so many things differently but at the day, I cannot. But I can do this, I can give you one piece of happiness. Thank you for loving me. Thank you.

*.*.*.* authors note.*.*.*.

So I've been thinking, these one shots are probably going to be mostly Shisui and Sakura because there aren't many stories about them. I'm thinking Kisame and a few others will make a entrance on a few of these chapters, but don't be surprised if it's mostly Shisui/Kakashi/Itachi x Sakura.

Enjoy.

Much love


	11. Chapter 11 - Compassion

"Who made you this way? Who did this to you?"

Her voice was barely above a soft whisper, her emerald eyes staring back into his striking black and cobalt blue hues. The fingers of her soft hand were running up and down his cheek, a sad smile playing on her lips as she did so.

"You have given so much, and yet here you are with bloody hands, losing your eye sight, and a death wish."

His jaw ticked, but he waited as she spoke, his heart was racing and he wasn't sure why. Her eyes weren't filled with pity or condescending spirits, nor anger nor hate.

They were filled with compassion, sorrow, sadness, understanding, and most of all...

Forgiveness.

Yet here he was, an S-class criminal with his kunai to her throat after she had just healed him even though he had inadvertently destroyed much of her life, then intentionally sought her out to bait his brother.

A man with a tainted soul, bloody hands, and a cold heart..

A heart that was suddenly beating as he slowly got lost in her eyes and listened to the words she spoke.

"I'm sorry." She smiled another sad smile.

"For what?" His eyes narrowed, his voice croaking for some unknown reason.

"For all that you have endured. For the weight on your shoulders, for the guilt that haunts your soul and your heart.. for the pain.." she bit her lip and he realized he had pushed too hard on the kunai and leaned back a bit, letting it fall from his hand but keeping a grip on her shoulder. "The list is too long, but I am sorry for all of it."

"I did what was asked of me by my village.." was his weak defense, pathetic now, even in his own ears for some reason. Any other day he would deem that enough, but at this moment, for some reason, it wasn't.

What was happening to him? How could this slip of a kunoichi that he had only known for a few weeks now make him question so many things? Make him feel things. He hated it, it made him angry and confused and suddenly he didn't know what was up and which was down.

Eyes became crimson once more, "Why? Why are you sorry?" He growled, "You did none of those things." His voice was monotone, and it was getting harder and harder for it to stay that way.

"No, but I followed blindly. I hated you because I was told you. I feared you because I was taught to..." she hummed softly, "And then I learned the truth and.." she closed her eyes and a single tear escaped her eyes, and once they opened once more, Uchiha Itachi was at a loss for words. There was so much pain and compassion, it hurt his heart and made it seize in his chest. "I wish you would let me help you find peace... without you dieing.. you deserve happiness and love, whatever that may mean.. because while you paint yourself a monster who doesn't deserve any of that.." her fingers went back to tracing his face, "You are just a man who loved his people so much, he became the villain the people needed to hide away the ugliness of their village."

"And, pray do tell," his voice was strained now - clawed at by unfamiliar feelings, "How would this work out? Where would I go? My brother is out for blood. Everyone knows who I am. What I've done. What could possibly happen?"

"There are options. We could tell shishou everything, have her pardon you as I know she would and tell Sasuke the truth. We could run away.." she smiled softly, "Or you could have Sasuke kill you and allow me to bring you back."

He wasn't sure if she was serious or delusional from the lack of sleep she had as of late. "You would do any of those things for me? I thought you were in love with my Otōto?"

Sakura smiled, "I love him, but not in love with him."

"Why are you willing so much to help me?" His voice was barely a whisper now, his forehead leaning against hers. Why? Why had she become so close? When had she gotten that look in her eyes? When had he wanted to follow her into the light but continuously fought it?

"Because, I mean everything I have said. You deserve and happiness and to be loved."

His eyes met hers once more, as his hand slackened a bit. His eyes darted between her eyes and her lips and he, for once, tossed caution to the side and kissed her deeply.

Whatever happened next, he didn't care. He would face the world if it meant standing beside her.


End file.
